A Run in the Park---A Blue Bloods Story
by mom2jlg
Summary: Another chapter in Jamie and Anna's relationship. Anna nurses Jamie through a minor injury.


A Run in the Park

Jamie and Anna were jogging in Central Park. It was a scotching hot Indian summer day. It was 90 degrees plus, and it wasn't even noon. They'd walked over to the park from Anna's apartment…and she'd remembered to bring a few provisions…a water bottle and a towel. But Jamie had forgotten.

They'd been running for about 45 minutes and Jamie knew he was pushing it a little hard for the heat, but he wasn't prepared for what happened next…when he suddenly stopped short in the middle of the jogging path with the worst Charley horse he'd ever had in his life. Anna nearly crashed into him.

"AHHH!"

"Jamie! What's wrong?"

He reached out for her arm to steady himself.

"My leg!...cramp!"

Anna took a step closer to him and slid her arm around his waist.

"There's a bench right over there."

There was a bench…about ten yards away. Jamie put his arm around her shoulders and took the first step…

"OW! God…damn…I can't! I can't!"

He couldn't put any weight at all on his right leg.

"Just…over there…"

He nodded in the direction of the grass alongside the path. Still leaning on Anna for support he hopped, cursing in pain with every jarring movement…and then collapsed in a heap. He rolled onto his side, pulling his knee up toward his chest. The pain was excruciating.

Anna knelt beside him and gently stretched his leg across her lap. Jamie had to clench his teeth to keep from screaming in pain. She started to massage his calf muscle but it was as hard as a rock. And Jamie jerked away every time she touched it.

"Honey…you need to try and relax."

"I can't!...hurts like hell!...AHHH!"

She unclipped the water bottle from her waistband.

"Here…sip this…slowly!"

"Anna…this hurts so bad!"

"You're dehydrated, Jamie…that's making it worse. Now drink the water! Slowly…don't gulp it!"

He tried to do what she told him…but every time her fingers hit the spot just below his knee he cried out in pain. But slowly…the cramp began to ease. After half an hour Anna had to stop to refill the water bottle at a nearby drinking fountain. She also soaked to towel she had brought along. She hurried back to Jamie. He was writhing in pain again.

"It's tightening up again…OW!"

Anna draped the wet towel around his neck and handed him the water bottle. Then she sat down and started working on his knotted muscle again. It was like she hadn't even touched it at all, let alone spent half an hour rubbing it.

"Good Lord! The Navy doesn't use knots this tight…"

"Very funny…OW! OW!"

He jumped as her fingers found the most tender spot.

"Careful!" His voice dropped to a whisper "Careful…please?"

Anna wanted to cry, it hurt her to see him in so much pain.

"Keep drinking, Honey…and try to take slow, deep breaths…"

"Easy for you to say….AHHH! Damn it!"

Another half hour went by and the knot had loosened up to a point where Anna was able to start gently stretching the muscle by flexing and applying pressure to his foot. She continued to do that and alternately massage his leg.

"How are you doing, Honey? Any better?"

Jamie took a deep breath.

"A little…I feel so stupid…"

"Do you feel like you could get up? We should really try and get you out of this heat."

"Yeah…I don't really have a choice…let's go."

She helped him to his feet and leaning heavily on her shoulder he gingerly tested leg. But despite Anna having worked on it for over an hour he could still barely put any weight on it. Slowly they hobbled over to the drinking fountain and refilled the water bottle and wet the towel again. They took only a couple of steps before Jamie had to stop.

"Do you have any money on you? It's over a mile to your place…there's no way…"

"Yeah…I have some cash. We can just cab it."

They started off to get a cab. The longer he walked on it the easier it became…but that wasn't saying very much. It felt like someone had stabbed him in the back of the leg and was twisting the knife with every step.

Thank God they didn't have any trouble getting a cab…but on the short ride back to Anna's the muscle started tightening up again. Jamie fought the urge to scream. Anna could see what was happening but there wasn't a whole lot she could do for him in the back seat of a cab. He had to just settle for crushing her hand in his. They pulled up in front of her building and she just handed the driver a wad of cash.

Getting Jamie out of the cab and up the stairs to her walk up apartment proved to be almost an impossible challenge. When she finally unlocked the door and helped him over to the couch he was practically in tears. She hurried back to close the door and gather a few things…a bottle of Gatorade from the fridge and she opened the chest and grabbed two pillows. She went back to Jamie and stretched his leg across her lap again. She untied his shoe and tried to ease it off his foot but he cried out when she put pressure on his leg.

She handed him the bottle and started massaging his calf again. He drank the Gatorade and wiped his face with the towel.

"God! I feel like such an idiot!"

"Shh…it's gonna be okay Jamie."

"I should have known better…"

"It's over now…"

He looked at her. She was still red in the face.

"You need to get something to drink Babe…I don't want you to get sick."

Anna propped his leg up on the pillows and went to grab more Gatorade from the fridge. She took a bottle for each of them, and as an afterthought grabbed a clean towel and ran it under the cold water.

She pulled the ottoman over and sat down beside him. She handed him the bottle and while he sipped it she gently sponged him with the cool cloth. It felt so good, and he was finally able to relax the way she'd been trying to get him to for the past two hours.

After she finished her Gatorade Anna moved to the sofa and stretched Jamie's leg across her lap again and spent another hour or so massaging it.

"You're too good to me…do you know that?" he told her.

"No such thing, Honey." She smiled. "Do you think you can get up?"

"I'll try…"

She helped him off the couch and he gingerly tested his leg. It was by no means as painful as it had been…but it was still sore. He held on to her for support and took a few hobbling steps, then a few on his own.

"It's still pretty tender…it feels like I pulled a muscle or something."

"You may have."

He continued to limp around the room for a few more minutes trying to see if stretching it out would help.

"Jamie, why don't you try a shower…?"

He limped over to her…

"I might need some help…something to hold onto."

She smiled at him again.

"I think you're definitely feeling better, Reagan."

He kissed her.

"I am…but I was serious about needing help. I still can't put my full weight on it."

"Okay…"

He leaned on her and hobbled to the bathroom. She turned on the shower and adjusted the temperature. Then she helped him undress and get in. He balanced on one leg and let the tepid water run over him.

Moments later Anna joined him. She ran her hands across his back and shoulders, over his arms and around to his chest. He sighed with pleasure…and she soaped up her hands and did it all over again. He awkwardly pivoted around on his bad leg. She tried to help him…or at least just keep him from falling. And then they were standing face to face. He took a deep breath…if it wasn't for his damn leg, he'd really be enjoying this. He ran his hands over her shoulders and arms…and she reached up and linked her fingers behind his neck. They held each other for a long time.

"I love you, Anna. I don't know what I'd do without you."

That was the first time he had actually said the words out loud. Anna looked up and blinked…she wasn't dreaming, was she? But there he was…looking straight into her eyes. She could tell he meant it.

"And I love you, Jamie."

And he kissed her. He kissed her over and over.

She helped him out of the shower and into clean shorts and a t-shirt, then over to the bed. He stretched out and Anna propped his leg up on a pile of pillows. Then she went back to the bathroom and rummaged through the medicine chest.

"What are you looking for Baby?"

"This…"

She came back into the bedroom with a tube in her hand. She sat down on the side of the bed and squirted some cream into her hand. She rubbed them together and then started to massage his aching leg.

Jamie caught his breath again when she touched it…it felt like it had been pounded with a meat tenderizer…and he wrinkled his nose at the menthol odor. But after a minute or two he breathed a sigh of relief as whatever the horrid smelling stuff was actually started to ease the pain.

"Thank you. That really helps a lot…it smells terrible…but it feels so much better."

"I know…the stuff works."

He patted the spot next to him on the bed. Anna moved up beside him and he took her in his arms.

"This wasn't exactly the way I planned today, but I'm not exactly complaining."

"Neither am I…" she said.

And they settled back against the pillows, deep in each other's arms.

And Jamie couldn't help but think…it wasn't such a bad day after all.


End file.
